Professional Documents
Culture Documents
SEQUENCE
What are business ethics? What are some of the approaches of dealing with ethics?
Utilitarianism Universalism Rights
Some Surveys
International Survey of more than 300 companies worldwide top ethical issues Employees conflict of interest 91%
Inappropriate gifts 91% Sexual Harassment 91% Unauthorized Payments 85%
Business Ethics
Business Ethics means conducting all aspects of business and dealing with all stakeholders in an ethical manner
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Common examples
Individual values and the company
Receiving or offering kickbacks Stealing from company Padding expense accounts to obtain reimbursements for questionable expenses Divulging confidential information or trade secrets Using company property and materials for personal use Conflict of interest
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Language of Ethical Lapse Everybody else does it Not a valid choice specially if law is being broken If we dont do it, someone else will Well wait until the law enforcers tell us its wrong Whats legal may not be ethical It does not really hurt anyone The system is unfair
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Individual determinants
Religion Belief that the divine reveals the nature of right and wrong in various areas of life Ex: Reciprocity, promise keeping, fairness, charity and responsibility to others all found in Confucianism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam
Other determinants
Moral philosophy Lawrence Kohlberg's stages of development Kantian Ethics on morality Cultural differences Ethical philosophies
Conventional
3. Interpersonal accord and conformity (social norms)
Utilitarianism basic premise is that an action is judged as right or wrong depending on the consequences of the action Universalism the means justify the ends of an action, not consequences Rights based on entitlements and unquestionable claims
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Not always possible to calculate utility or to analyze massive amount of information Ignores distribution of good is it uniformly distributed or favours specific group? No common definition of what is good? Assumes that all can be measured in a common numerical scale Action that produces the greatest balance of value for greatest number of people.
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Kantian Ethics Universality it counters the natural temptation to make exceptions for ourselves or to apply double standards Also provides hypothetical answers underlying the common question What if everyone did that? Provides a strong foundation for rights
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Weaknesses Does not lend itself to precise method for decision making Difficult to think of all humanity each time a decision has to be made Places greater emphasis on welfare of every person, but does not really draw a line Hard to receive conflicts when criteria has to treat everyone equally decisions typically involve conflicts of interests
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Why Ethics?
Laws are insufficient and do not cover all aspects or gray areas of a problem Free market and regulated market mechanism do not effectively inform owners and managers about how to respond to complex crises
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Globalization has brought about greater involvement with ethical considerations and most importantly achieving competitive advantage through business ethics. Globalization and business ethics are linked as they affect a companys ability to commit to its shareholders, in particular to external investors, and preserve the trust needed for further investment and growth.
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As the speed of comparable tangible assets acquisition accelerates and the pace of imitation quickens, firms that want to sustain distinctive global competitive advantages need to protect, exploit and enhance their unique intangible assets, particularly INTEGRITY (building firms of integrity is the hidden logic of business ethics).
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Employees Competition
Consumers
Business Partners
Innovation
Public Activities
Community
Shareholders
Environment
Standard of Conduct
Business Integrity
Conflict of Interest
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Foundation of Trust
Standard Of Conduct
Be open in your communication Respect others, guarding against oppressive
behaviour
Treat people fairly and equally; no favouritism Manage Organisations and your own reputation
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Foundation of Trust
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Foundation of Trust
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Foundation of Trust
Conflict of interest Our personal activities should not conflict with our responsibilities to the company
Ensure there is no conflict of interest in recruiting family members or people you have personal connections with Ensure there is no conflict of interest when providing business opportunities to people you are connected with
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Foundation of Trust
Community involvement Organisation must strive to be a good corporate citizen and work in partnership with the communities in which we operate
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Business partners Expect business partners to behave in a way that is consistent with the business principles!
Ask business partners to obey the law and respect
our Code & encourage them to sign up to it as well We conduct due diligence on our business partners We source alternative partners
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Employees Respect the basic rights of employees & the dignity of colleagues
Practice respectful management methods Do not discriminate-gender, sex, race, religion, age Do not harass or bully and do not accept it (physical or psychological) You have a right to air your views
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Employees Beliefs)
Communicate and consult with employees Encourage and appreciate diversity, mutual trust and respect Develop individuals skills and capabilities
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Shareholders Provide all shareholders with reliable information on activities and financial performance
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Innovation
Our scientific innovations need to respect the concerns of our consumers and of society. We must ensure the health of consumers We must ensure the highest standards of product safety
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Consumers committed to offering products that offer good quality and value
Ensure that products are safe and clearly and accurately advertised and labeled Products are designed to increase the quality of life
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